


Implicitly (Between the Lines of Ink)

by Polska_1999



Series: Sprint Towards Blackout (Happy Steve Bingo 2018) [25]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Boys In Love, Bucky Barnes Recovering, Bucky Barnes Remembers, Cute, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Fluff, Fluffy, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, love notes in odd places
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-30
Updated: 2018-11-30
Packaged: 2019-09-01 20:42:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16772560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Polska_1999/pseuds/Polska_1999
Summary: The notes started appearing sometime after Project Insight.A story of forgiveness, recovery, and love, told implicitly in lines of ink on small scraps of paper, exchanged across distance and time.





	Implicitly (Between the Lines of Ink)

**Author's Note:**

> For the _Love Notes in Odd Places (Free Space)_ square on my **Happy Steve Bingo** card.
> 
> P.S. If anyone here is a fan of the _Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes_ TV show, let me know if you find the reference in this story to one of the episodes from that show!

It all started a few days after Steve was released from the hospital following the Project Insight fiasco. He had been packing his stuff up, ready to go across the country in search of his friend, when he found a note at the bottom of his sock drawer.

_ I am sorry for shooting you. _

Things only escalated from there, and while the notes were definitely infuriating at first due to them being proof of how close yet how far ahead Bucky was, it eventually became a sort of ritual. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few days later came another one, shoved into Steve’s shoe in his motel room in Nashville.

_ The museums say we knew each other. That true? _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Then another one appeared, this one left partially under Steve’s welcome mat at his front door. It took Steve a moment to recover after reading it. 

_ I’m sorry for leaving three holes in your apartment wall. I patched them up for you — don’t want you catching a cold because they let the warm air out during the winter. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week later, under the bananas in the fruit bowl, in Sam’s house.

_ What the hell are these things? The tag on them says bananas, but that’s not how bananas taste, right? _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ten days later, attached to the inside of Steve’s shield:

_ I think I’m starting to feel like a Bucky again. Maybe not the Bucky that lived in the previous century, but definitely a Bucky. _

That was when Steve decided to write a response. 

_ That’s good. If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to reach out.  _

_ -Steve _

He left it on the dashboard of his motorcycle while he went out to blow up a HYDRA base. The note was gone when he returned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks later, in a motel bathroom, hanging off a string from the hanger for the hand towel:

_ Brave of you to assume that I’ll be the one needing help and not you.  _

_ -Bucky _

The signature at the end of the letter left Steve with an unexpected sense of astonishment and pride. It was simple yet significant. 

_ Of course I’m assuming that, since you took all the stupid with you. _

_ -Steve _

Steve left the note under the lamp on the bedside table next to his bed. 

Come morning, the note was gone. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Three days later, atop a building with a rock as a paperweight: 

_ You can’t shoot a gun to save your life. You emptied an entire clip on that asshole and still missed.  _

_ No wonder they gave you a vibranium frisbee instead. _

_ -Bucky _

Steve scrawled out a quick response while Nat and Sam waited and watched. He never told them in detail what the hell he was doing; they wouldn’t understand. 

_ I never had a reason to learn how to shoot a gun because you knew how and always had my back. _

_ -Steve _

He tied that note to the rock and threw it off the building and onto another rooftop, trusting that Bucky would get it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Steve, you know he may be playing along to make you vulnerable.”

“He’s not.”

“He tried to kill you last time he got close to you.”

“No, he didn’t.”

“There’s something you’re not telling us.”

“Don’t expect me to tell you now either, Nat. You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week later, in an art museum bathroom, stuck into the toilet paper dispenser:

_ The museums lie about a lot. First was that they said you were a benevolent and peaceful kid. Ha. I got fucked over by HYDRA and even I know that you were nowhere near the goody two-shoes they paint you as.  _

_ Second was that they called us friends when that doesn’t even encompass the half of it. _

_ -Bucky _

The last sentence of the note made Steve forget how to breathe for a moment. 

He also forgot to leave a reply. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So he’s been shadowing you constantly.”

“Yeah.”

“Even in the motel room?”

“Yeah. I left my reply under the lamp and it was gone in the morning.”

“So you telling me that Bucky the Friendly Assassin ghosted into our motel room while we slept and picked up your love note to him without waking us up?”

“It wasn’t a love note, Sam.”

“That’s what you got out of that entire sentence?”

“Had to correct you.”

“So the other stuff is true?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, not gonna ask.”

“You don’t have to keep following me, you know.”

“I know. What’s the next part of the plan?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Half a week later, slipped between Steve’s StarkPhone and its case:

_ I didn’t drop into the motel, pick up the note, and leave immediately. I couldn’t, and I don’t know why, and it only got harder to leave the longer I stayed. Leaving wasn’t easy then. _

_ It’s not easy now, either. _

_ -Bucky _

Steve’s heart probably stopped for a moment at the last sentence before the signature. Bucky had almost contacted him. 

Steve almost tripped over his own feet while grabbing something to write his response with. 

_ You know, you don’t have to go through all of this alone. Reach out. We — the Avengers and myself — can help you set things right. _

_ -Steve _

He put the response in his back pocket when he went out for a run.

As expected, it was gone by the time he returned to his apartment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Steve found a response in his mailbox. 

_ Can’t do that, Steve, not yet. Need to sort things out in my head, need to clean up the wreckage of my past. Alone. _

_ -Bucky _

Steve felt wounded at first, but… he understood, and he tried to be as supportive as he could when writing his response. 

_ I was never able to stop you from doing something you wanted to do. I hope you find what you’re looking for. _

_ -Steve _

He left the note in the mailbox.

Half an hour later, a note was slipped under his door. 

_ Tenfold, Steve.  _

_ Bucky out. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One month. 

Two months.

Three.

Four.

Six. 

Not a single note from Bucky showed up. 

However, HYDRA bases around the globe were inexplicably combusting into thin air, so Steve knew better than to worry. Bucky was simply busy. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Steve walked into his suite in the Avengers Tower. Everything seemed normal, or at least as normal as was possible when one lived with Tony Stark. Well, until he found a laminated note floating in his coffee. 

_ At your six. _

Steve whirled around and almost tipped his chair over due to his sudden movements. He would have fallen ass-first to the ground if a cybernetic arm hadn’t steadied his chair. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After that, the notes continued, even if it was only for their sentimental value.

In the fruit basket:

_ We need to buy more plums. They keep “mysteriously” disappearing. -Bucky _

Attached to the shower head:

_ Bucky, you’re the reason we have a cover for the drain to keep hair from clogging the pipes. It would be appreciated if you used it. -Steve _

In Steve’s closet:

_ You need to buy better-fitting shirts. And better clothes in general. -Bucky _

On Bucky’s collection of Futura magazines:

_ You need to find better magazines to read than ones with Tony Stark on the cover. -Steve _

On Steve’s shield:

_ You need to stop carrying around a brightly colored target on your back. That, or let me read my magazines in peace. Also, it’s fun to annoy Tony Stank about the magazines later too. Try it sometime. -Bucky _

On Bucky’s arm: 

_ Says the one who has the same shield painted on his shoulder. -Steve _

On the door to Steve’s art room:

_ Says the one who painted the shield on my shoulder for me. -Bucky _

On the mirror in the bathroom when Bucky walked in:

_ You love that design no matter what you say. -Steve _

On Steve’s forehead:

_ Of course I love it. You made it for me. -Bucky _

On Bucky’s pillow:

_ I made it for you because I love you. -Steve _

On Steve’s pillow: 

_ Tell me something I don’t know. -Bucky _

On Bucky’s pillow:

_ Bucky Barnes, I want to marry you. -Steve (hopefully soon-to-be Steve Barnes) _

On Steve’s pillow: 

_ About time you asked, now put down your pen and cuddle me, punk. -Bucky (hopefully soon-to-be Bucky Rogers) _

On Bucky’s chest, over his heart:

_ Jerk. (My jerk, though.) I love you. I’m with you until the end of the line. -Steve  _

On Steve’s chest, over his heart:

_ I’m with you till the end of the line, too. -Bucky _

**Author's Note:**

> And here we have it, folks! The finale of the Happy Steve Bingo fills, reaching a full blackout bingo on my card! This was probably one of my favorite stories ever to write, if not _the_ most favorite story to write.
> 
> I hope everyone has enjoyed this journey. Thank you so much to those who stuck with me till the end of the line, and a huge thanks to the mods of the Happy Steve Bingo for organizing this event!
> 
> As always, thank you all so much for reading! If you liked it, feel free to drop a kudos or comment if you have something you want to say.
> 
> Most of my works, including this one, are beta-read by the one and only amazingly wonderful [SpaceKeet!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceKeet/pseuds/SpaceKeet) If you get the chance, go out and give her some love!


End file.
